A blog about preschool, public schools, and what it's really like to be a teacher

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The weather was wacky today. Started off warm and steamy, then the temperature plummeted. Rained all day. Perhaps it was affecting the children, as a few of them had a rough time.

One child — who has never acted this way before — started acting out sexually, repeatedly attempting to kiss Nan on the lips, hugging (squeezing roughly, more like it) and kissing two students even when told to stop, rubbing in a sexual way against Nan’s leg, talking about boyfriends and girlfriends, and so on. Yikes! The school psychologist dismissed it, but I am worried, and will take it up with the social worker tomorrow.

Poor Leo was really off today. We wouldn’t let him wear his pirate hat in the classroom, and for the rest of the morning he was totally disconnected and wouldn’t participate in anything.

Poor Max went to the house corner and the little girl who was already there left as soon as he arrived. Then he waited hopefully for someone else to choose house, but no one did. He stood there with a sad face and said, “doesn’t anyone want to play with me?” No one wants to play with him, because he is mean to them, and kicks them or pushes them over or yells at them. There is no way to talk to him about this, though. He is incapable of discussing his own behavior. He just yells stuff like “Go away, crabby teacher! I’m telling on you!” My asssistant teacher took pity on him and went to play with him in the house corner, which helped, but he still looked sad.

And Nan — today was her last day, and she was trying to keep tabs on both Max and Leo, but simultaneously trying to arrange for her replacement and fill out paperwork and try to sort out contradictory information on changing jobs (sign this paper! Now! No, don’t sign that paper, that would be really bad! and so on).